On Sunday morning, Feb. 26, an unmanned Russian Soyuz space capsule successfully docked with the International Space Station (ISS), reaching the end of its two-day journey from Kazakhstan, Phys.org reports.
The MS-23 Soyuz capsule autonomously latched to the ISS and will eventually return three astronauts whose original return vehicle was damaged by a tiny meteorite.
After Delay, 3 Astronauts Can Finally Come Back Home
As shown by live video from ISS partner NASA, the Soyuz capsule has successfully completed its mission. It will return in September with astronaut Frank Rubio and cosmonauts Dmitry Petelin and Sergei Prokopyev.
MS-22 brought the three astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) in September last year. Initially, they were only supposed to stay for about six months, until the end of March.
Mid-December, however, their capsule began leaking coolant after being struck by a tiny space rock, according to US and Russian officials.
In December 2022, the astronauts' return was delayed when a meteoroid struck the Soyuz crew capsule and punctured the exterior radiator, releasing coolant into space. Roscosmos's official statement provides information about the December incident.
People in Space
Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, decided to send MS-23 to replace the damaged vessel, but without the vessel's crew of three.
Rubio, Petelin, and Prokopyev will spend nearly a year in space without a replacement. The damaged MS-22 will depart the space station without passengers in late March and return to Earth.
Six people are currently on board the International Space Station (ISS), including NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, Russian Anna Kikina, and Japan's Koichi Wakata, who arrived on a SpaceX spacecraft in October.
Next week, they will be joined by crew members of the Crew-6 mission, including two Americans, an Emirati, and a Russian, who will also travel aboard a SpaceX capsule that is anticipated to take off on Monday from Florida.
Crew-5 would return to Earth after a few days of overlap, leaving the ISS with six people on board. MS-23's docking with the ISS represents the resumption of international cooperation and scientific space research.
The International Space Station
The International Space Station (ISS) is a one-of-a-kind laboratory in space, allowing astronauts to conduct research on various topics, including physical and biological sciences and technology development.
The presence of astronauts on the International Space Station also allows for the testing and validating technologies for future human space exploration missions, such as those planned for the Moon and Mars.
NASA documents indicate that future moon-related experiments will involve a microscope that could operate on the lunar surface, examining space station bacteria that could keep astronauts healthy on the moon, and an experimental high-speed communications system.
International cooperation in space is critical to the continued success of the ISS and other space missions. Collaboration among countries and entities has enabled sharing of expertise, knowledge, and resources required for space exploration and research.
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